Intermittent fasting, also known as IF, has been a hot topic in the health and fitness world lately for helping men and women lose weight and get lean with research to back it up.  It’s also said to boost energy levels, increase motivation, improve cognitive function and in some cases protect against disease and improve the longevity of life.

I know what you’re thinking, and YES it is true. Simply changing your eating patterns could be exactly what your body has needed for you to finally get results. Let me explain this a bit further . . .

WHAT IS IF?

I’ll start off by saying that IF is not a diet. I repeat NOT a diet. It’s an eating pattern where you cycle between periods of eating, known as the fed state, and periods of fasting, obviously known as the fasted state. IF generally speaking does not say anything about which foods to eat during the fed state but rather when you should eat them.

There are multiple methods of intermittent fasting. Here are the three most common:  

The Crescendo Method  doesn’t require you to fast every day, only a few days per week, spaced throughout the week. For example, Monday, Wednesday and Friday. This is a great method to start with for a week or two as you ease into intermittent fasting.

Fasting Window: 12-16 hours

Eating Window: 8-12 hours

16/8 Method  sometimes called the “Leangains Method,” is another brief intermittent fasting routine that’s used specifically to target body fat and improve lean muscle mass. Hence the name Lean-Gains. In my opinion, this is the best and most effective option for IF. 

Fasting Window: 16 hours

Eating Window: 8 hours

24 Hour Protocol  also known as “eat-stop-eat” requires you to do a 24-hour fast, once or twice a week (max). You can choose the time in which you start fasting. Some people prefer to fast from 9pm to 9pm the following day, or begin their fast after breakfast. If you decide to experiment with this method – please note that this puts you at a higher risk of hormonal imbalance. Although there are health benefits to it, the longer your fast, the greater the risk you’re taking.

Fasting Window: 24 hours

Eating Window: 0

As you can see, each method has their own pattern. It’s a cycle of fasting for a certain period of time, followed by an eating period “fed” state. Eating every few hours keeps you in this fed state, which is when your body is busy digesting, absorbing, and assimilating the nutrients from your meals. Accelerated fat burning isn’t the main priority here when this is going on. And in reality most of us remain in the fed state during the day unless we’re sleeping. Hence the word “break-fast” in the morning. You can still break your fast, it’s just going to be a little later in the day so that you can utilize those fat burning hours! I’ll let you in on a little secret – this is the best time for you to get your workout in! But that topic is for another day in the near future . . .  

THE BENEFITS

So I’m sure you’re curious as to how you can get started! But lets pump the breaks! First I want to make sure this is the right fit for you! The answer is more than likely yes, but there are certain populations that I do not recommend trying intermittent fasting. Also, if you have any medical condition you should consult your doctor before trying intermittent fasting.

This is not for you:

• If you are or may be pregnant or breastfeeding.
• If you have a history of anorexia.
• If you struggle managing your low-blood sugar levels.
• If you have a sleep disorder.

Now ladies, listen up! We all have to be sensitive to the fact that we have a rare set of hormones that can be altered by fasting. There have been various anecdotal reports from women who became amenorrheic (their menstrual period stopped) when they started doing IF, then returned back to normal once they stopped intermittent fasting. For these reasons, women should definitely be careful when experimenting with IF for the first time. Ease into it, and if you have any problems like amenorrhea or hormonal imbalances then please return back to a “traditional” eating pattern. A majority of the time these cases were from women following longer fasting methods (i.e. Eat-stop-eat or the 24 hour Fast) or restricting their caloric intake to an extreme low. Regardless, the risk is still there I want you to be careful as you begin your IF journey.

SO SHOULD YOU TRY IT OUT?

Again, IF is just one of many lifestyle strategies that can improve your health. What I love about it? It’s SIMPLE, it works for my busy mom life, and it allows me to be a little bit more flexible with the foods I eat during my fed state. Plus it’s never been easier for me to manage a low body fat percentage. But at the end of the day my go- to recommendations are always this – eat real food, find a fitness program that works for you, start getting more sleep, find ways to decrease your stress levels and absolutely get someone in your life that can keep you accountable to all of this (Ahem, I’m sitting right here if you can’t think of anyone and I’d love to help).

If you’ve read all of this, and even just the thought of fasting makes you feel miserable then chances are you shouldn’t try it! Just continue to do what works for you, or contact me if nothing has been working and we will find something else that WILL fit your lifestyle.

There is no one-size-fits-all plan for every single human being. The best diet plan for you is the one you can stick to long term, that keeps you healthy.

Intermittent fasting is great for some people, but not others. The only way to find out  is to try it for yourself! If you feel good when fasting and find it to be a sustainable way of eating, then it can be an incredibly powerful way for you to decrease your body fat, increase your lean muscle mass and improve many other aspects of your health.

BE SURE TO SUBSCRIBE BELOW + DON’T MISS MY BLOG IN THE WEEKS AHEAD WHERE I’LL SHARE MORE DETAILS WITH YOU ON THIS IF LIFESTYLE

UNTIL THEN . . .